February 19, 2004

Test Spin: Al Qaeda

I can say with no hesitation that this music video is the most violent thing since the knife that first sliced bread. Produced by British Jihadists with the intent of mustering English-speaking Muslims to their battle call, “Dirty Kuffar (Unbeliever)” will not likely appear on MTV anytime soon. The blood-orgy commences with a CNN video that features US soldiers relishing their own arrogance after killing a wounded Iraqi. It then segues to Sheikh Terra, Qu’ran in right hand and pistol in left, both pointed at the camera. Soon after he begins to rap, half in Arabic and half in English, calling Bush an unbeliever and Blair a “B-liar.” Apparently fans of things that are sort of vaguely reminscent of puns, they also employ such insta-classic slang as “Digihad” and “OGhad” (literally “Original Gangsta-had”).

The next two minutes are cuts between a series of masked rappers and videos of terrorists, explosions, sniper scopes, and political figures with messages like “Kill the Crusaders” and “Be Prepared for Battle with the Infidels” superimposed. Various heads of heathen states morph into silly animals and humerous cartoon characters. It is the first song to give a shout-out to Hamas since LL Cool J’s “Phenomenon.” The video ends with the rappers laughing to the twin towers falling, and then presents a list of countries that the US has victimized since 1945. If scripted, the result would be the anti-Geneva Convention. As it is, it demonstrates the stupidity of people arguing over who has the better dietary traditions and imaginary friend.

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Tomorrow’s Deneault Memorial at Barton Hall serves two main purposes for both the men’s and women’s track squads. The first is to honor Marc Deneault ’01, a quarter-mile runner who died in 1999. The other is to prepare for next week’s two-day Heptagonal championship competition. Not thought of as one of the Red’s toughest competitions of the year, coaches for both the men’s and women’s teams will have their work cut out for them, as they take on the arduous task of paring their 60-member squads into 33 stars who will go to Heps next week. Women “The better the team, the harder the decisions become when deciding who should race in the Heps,” said coach Lou Duesing. While some spots have already been filled, Duesing said a few positions remain to be finalized. Despite the competition, Duesing emphasized that he did not want his team to focus on internal competition this weekend. “My goal is for all 33 people to make a contribution,” said Duesing. “It’s a matter of fitting all those people together.” In terms of preparation, the women’s squad, bolstered by tremendous senior leadership, has been very focused in its practices the last few weeks. “This is pretty much a no-nonsense team,” said Duesing. “The degree to which a team is successful is the quality of senior leadership.” Senior jumper Hannah Garrity has returned from her trip abroad in Scotland to regain her dominant status and provide vital leadership on and off the track. Other chief seniors include mid-distance runners Ann Hansgate and Natalie Gingerich, as well as long-jumpers Ib Stanley-Ikhilioju, and Kalifa Pilgrim. Another strength of the women’s team this year, according to Duesing, has been the consistency of the junior class. Notable junior leaders include runners Kate Boyles, Jessica and Shonda Brown, and Kari Steed. “They have a great attitude about them. They are rock solid people who get mad if they’re not doing several events. All of them set the tone in practice that we are coming at you with everything we’ve got, so get ready. I love that about them.” Men Veteran coach Nathan Taylor knows what it takes to capture the Heps championship. In the last 10 years, Taylor has been the only coach to steal the Heps championship from Princeton. He first did it in 1997 while coaching at Penn, and he did it last year with the Red. This year, he and his team will look to repeat as champions, but Taylor realizes that he has some serious decisions to make based, in part, on his athletes’ performances this weekend. “We have a number of guys trying to earn spots on the Heps roster this weekend,” said Taylor. “I’d like to see them all do well. Others will be resting this weekend. Therefore, this is really a multi-faceted meet for us.” An areas in which the men have excelled this year has been the jumping events; the long spring group, which includes juniors Brian Eremita, Kenan Goggins, and Greg Simonds, has earned Cornell valuable points all season. Additionally, the 35-pound weight competition, featuring senior star Giles Longley-Cook, and the shot put, which spotlights junior sensation Zach Beadle have also been strong spots for this squad. There are some surprising freshman contributors who have very solid chances of racing next weekend as well. Triple-jumper Kofi Ofori-Ansah is one of the rookies who has surprised Taylor. “He has really made a huge improvement from high school,” said Taylor, “and has the best triple jump in the league.” Injuries for this track team, as for most teams down the stretch of a season, could be a deciding factor in whether this year’s squad can repeat as champions. Senior pole vaulter Travis Offner has suffered a multitude of injuries, including two different torn quad muscles and a hamstring injury. But the setbacks will not prevent Offner from competing in his final Heps. According to Taylor, “His best pole vault is a foot better than anyone in the conference. He is one of our best bets for a championship.” Archived article by Josh Fox

For Cornell’s seniors, the clock is ticking. Dani Aretino, Megan Fannon, Karen Force, Tanya Karcic, Lauren Kilduff, and Katie Romey will have their second to last road trip this weekend against two of the most respected teams in the Ivies, Harvard (10-10, 3-4 Ivy) and Dartmouth (12-8, 5-2). “This is the second to last road trip for these seniors,” explained head coach Dayna Smith. “I’m looking for all of them to step up.” The Red (8-13, 3-5) is looking to make up for last weekend’s two disappointing losses to Princeton and Penn. The Red showed little energy in last Friday’s game against Princeton and in turn paid the price, while Penn has been a dominating force all season. However, Smith does not view this as a must-win weekend. “We don’t look at this as a do-or-die situation,” said Smith. “We’re just trying to take a look at this weekend as a fresh start.” The Red starts off with Dartmouth tonight at 7 p.m. in Hanover. The Green has been a tough squad to beat all season, hanging on directly behind Penn in the battle for first place. In addition, the last time these two teams met, Dartmouth’s Elise Morrison was able to use her height to her advantage, registering 26 points. However, this time, the Red knows what to expect and hopes to correct its mistakes from the first contest. “Last time with Dartmouth up in our gym, we played really good basketball,” said Smith. As for Harvard, few fans who were there for the Red’s last battle at home against the Crimson will ever forget what occurred. With only seconds left in regulation, the Red tied the game and then won 66-64 in overtime. At the time, many favored defending Ivy-champ Harvard to take the title again. Now it is a different story, with the Crimson holding a 3-4 Ivy record. Regardless, the Crimson still has quite a bit of outstanding talent. The last time Harvard came into Newman Arena, senior Hana Peljto scored 20 and had 14 rebounds. In addition, the team is still a threat from three-point range. “Anytime you prepare for Harvard and Dartmouth, you prepare like it’s the toughest road trip in the league no matter what their records are,” Smith explained. Tip-off against Dartmouth and Harvard will be at 7 p.m. both nights.Archived article by Michael Pandolfini